In the art of hazardous devices access and disablement, including explosive ordnance disposal, a common tool, particularly for neutralizing improvised explosive devices (IEDs), is the propellant driven disrupter, also generally and colloquially referred to as a “water cannon”. A propellant driven disrupter may be used to fire a solid projectile or a jet of fluid, which is typically water, at an IED with the goal of disrupting the explosive and avoiding its detonation. A solid projectile may penetrate tougher casing materials. On the other hand, a jet of water has considerable mass and momentum and acts upon the target explosive for a longer duration than does a solid “slug” projectile. The water may penetrate into the IED and separate components such as the fuzing system and firing train, without requiring precise aiming due to the large cross section of the water jet. Additionally, a jet of water has a reduced risk of initiating an explosive due to shock, compared to a solid projectile.
A significant limitation of fluid jets, particularly of water jets, is that they can rapidly disperse and break up into a cloud of droplets, referred to as atomization, as a result of the combination of dynamic forces acting upon the water jets. Atomization of the water jet reduces the length and mass of the water jet, which limits the momentum and energy transfer to the target IED and limits the duration of the action. This reduces the effectiveness as well as the reliability of IED disruption when using water jets. Thus, there is a need in the art to address these limitations and to provide a reliable platform for neutralizing a wide range of IEDs, over a wide range of situations, including various device and environmental conditions. Provided herein are specially designed adapters, and associated methods, for use with propellant driven disrupters which improve the effectiveness and reliability of fluid jets propelled from disrupters to perforate and disable IEDs or to aid in a breach of a structure.